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giovedì 4 maggio 2017

Paedophile teacher and football coach sentenced

A teacher and football coach has been sentenced to 16 years in jail and a further eight years on extended licence after being convicted of sexually abusing a child.

Micheal Smee, 39, of Aylward Drive, Stevenage, was found guilty of raping a child under 13 years old, following a trial at Cambridge Crown Court and was jailed after being sentenced yesterday.

He pleaded guilty to five other counts of sexual activity with a child.

The crimes took place between January 2013 and April last year.

Smee, who was a PE teacher and a football coach in Hertfordshire must serve at least 10 years behind bars before being considered for parole.

Upon sentencing the judge told him: “I am in no doubt whatsoever that you pose a significant risk to members of the public, particularly young boys.

“You are every parent’s nightmare.”

Smee will remain on the Sex Offenders Register for life and a restraining order has been put in place banning him from contacting his victim or family members.

Detective Constable Zoe Maddison, who was the investigating officer in the case, said: “Smee abused his position of trust as a teacher and football coach to groom his young victim over a significant period of time.

“The victim’s family trusted Smee and they have been left devastated by what has happened.

“I hope that, following Smee’s conviction and his substantial prison sentence, his victim is now, with support, able to rebuild his life and move forward.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to commend the victim for his bravery throughout the criminal investigation and court proceedings.”

Frances Bush from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Smee took advantage of a position of trust and his victim’s love of sport to commit these terrible acts.

“It is thanks to the victim’s bravery in coming forward and the hard work of specialist detectives and specialist CPS prosecutors that he will be unable to continue his offending.”

Detective Inspector Lynda Coates, from the Herts police joint child protection investigation team, said: “It takes tremendous courage for victims of sexual offences to report them to police and I would like to reassure the public that Herts police has specialist officers to support victims of these types of crimes.”

If you are a victim of sexual abuse but do not wish to report it to the police, you can contact the Sunflower Centre on 08 088 088 088 (Monday to Friday 10am to 10pm) or visit www.hertssunflower.org.

Alternatively, you can make a self-referral to a sexual assault referral centre (SARC), which provides comprehensive advice, guidance and support to men, women and young people who have experienced sexual assault, whether this happened in the past or recently. They can be contacted via the free telephone number 0808 802 9999.